I had a BA3 preamp built to drive an F4 power amp, the case is a huge HIFI2000 one, there already is a dual PSU and enough space to either add the Pearl3 phono stage or a second BA3 and make it balanced.
During a trip to the US I bought extra BA3 cards to eventually either add one to the existing preamp and make it balanced or, in the future, make a simple and smaller footprint one, I also got the Pearl3 kit to build the phono stage, again, either in the same case as the existing BA3 or in a case of its own and then add second board to the existing one and turn it balanced which also means I will have to have the F4 modified to be run balanced.
Only balanced source I use is the DAC, would it make sense to go the balanced route?
Grazie
Giovanni
edit: it's a Pearl 3 phono stage, can't edit the title
During a trip to the US I bought extra BA3 cards to eventually either add one to the existing preamp and make it balanced or, in the future, make a simple and smaller footprint one, I also got the Pearl3 kit to build the phono stage, again, either in the same case as the existing BA3 or in a case of its own and then add second board to the existing one and turn it balanced which also means I will have to have the F4 modified to be run balanced.
Only balanced source I use is the DAC, would it make sense to go the balanced route?
Grazie
Giovanni
edit: it's a Pearl 3 phono stage, can't edit the title
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^ There are those that might offer a solution that "makes sense", but very little about what we do in this hobby makes sense.
If you want the "ultimate" edition, and you have space...
Add the BA-3 board and make it balanced.
Add the balanced output driver to the P3 for balanced output. P3 in two chassis.
I would not put the P3 into the BA-3 chassis. I'd specifically avoid doing that. One of the goals of the phono stage is to keep it remarkably quiet. IMHO, there will always be a compromise if you try to cram all 3 of the P3 boards (PSU and two channel boards) into the same chassis as the BA-3. Managing all the wiring for mains, in/out etc. to keep it quiet would be a challenge. Also, if you get the guy that built (and severely messed up) your F4 to do it... it would be challenging to do it to even a portion of the full potential.
Separate chassis is my recommendation for those reasons. Others may differ in their thoughts.
If you want the "ultimate" edition, and you have space...
Add the BA-3 board and make it balanced.
Add the balanced output driver to the P3 for balanced output. P3 in two chassis.
I would not put the P3 into the BA-3 chassis. I'd specifically avoid doing that. One of the goals of the phono stage is to keep it remarkably quiet. IMHO, there will always be a compromise if you try to cram all 3 of the P3 boards (PSU and two channel boards) into the same chassis as the BA-3. Managing all the wiring for mains, in/out etc. to keep it quiet would be a challenge. Also, if you get the guy that built (and severely messed up) your F4 to do it... it would be challenging to do it to even a portion of the full potential.
Separate chassis is my recommendation for those reasons. Others may differ in their thoughts.
Ahah, ciao @ItsAllInMyHead no it's not gonna be that one, my local guy who's very skilled and who both made my F4 work and assembled my BA3, recently he restored my Sansui AU-D7 and a Marantz 300DC which he said it's amazing the way it is built to be that very old.
So I rather leave the BA3 on its very own and eventually make it balanced, it would only (...) mean to add the extra board I already have, caps, FETs and the balanced outputs as it already has the second PSU, what would the advantage be if I still run the power amp unbalanced?
So I rather leave the BA3 on its very own and eventually make it balanced, it would only (...) mean to add the extra board I already have, caps, FETs and the balanced outputs as it already has the second PSU, what would the advantage be if I still run the power amp unbalanced?
^ In fairness - There isn't a tremendous advantage (IMO) to balanced other than what it was designed for: noise cancellation / rejection. That can allow longer cable runs with lower noise etc. For people that like short speaker-cable runs and longer interconnect runs from pre to amplifiers, this works well. IMHO, there are more disadvantages, particularly for the DIYer, than advantages. Double the cost, double the opportunity for error, etc. etc. SE done well, is likely to outperform balanced done poorly.
Back to you - If you want to do balanced, then personally, I think the biggest advantage may be from the phono stage / pre-amp. I know your DAC already has balanced outputs. My reasoning is:
If great measures were taken to keep the S/N as high as practical up to the outputs of the phono pre, then why not add two chips to the boards and run it balanced out to keep the signal as well-preserved as practical to the pre-amp.
SE Amplifier - Many people run balanced amplifiers / bridged outputs not because they are concerned with signal integrity or (maybe) a tiny bit lower distortion. I'd hazard a guess that most people do it either for fun and/or because the power output looks humongous in comparison to running the amp "Single Ended". Some people confuse balanced with running the amplifier bridged. You can run your F4 as "SE" perfectly. If you ever decide to build another F4 and run them as balanced / bridged monoblocks, you'll have a set-up that dreams are made of.
You don't "need" to have balanced for the phono or the BA-3, but it sounds like you may want to. Like I said, most of what we do in this hobby doesn't make a lot of sense, but it sure is fun.
Making the P3 balanced is as easy as adding a chip to each board and adding the outputs.
Building the BA-3 in a balanced configuration will take more effort, but you already have someone that knows how to build the boards, and you already have the additional PSU. So, why not use it?
Option 2 - Leave BA-3 SE and put the P3 in the same chassis if there is room. I'd just have your new builder lay it out properly and do some measurements to ensure that it is not noisy. If it's not noisy, then I'd bet it will sound marvelous.
Edited to add - Sorry I hit Post by accident.
Option 3 - Leave BA-3 SE and build P3 in one separate chassis. You don't use your BA-3 board you bought.
Option 4 - Leave BA-3 SE and build P3 in two chassis.
Option 5 - Build BA-3 balanced, build P3 in two chassis w/o balanced output. That seems silly to me.
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Back to you - If you want to do balanced, then personally, I think the biggest advantage may be from the phono stage / pre-amp. I know your DAC already has balanced outputs. My reasoning is:
If great measures were taken to keep the S/N as high as practical up to the outputs of the phono pre, then why not add two chips to the boards and run it balanced out to keep the signal as well-preserved as practical to the pre-amp.
SE Amplifier - Many people run balanced amplifiers / bridged outputs not because they are concerned with signal integrity or (maybe) a tiny bit lower distortion. I'd hazard a guess that most people do it either for fun and/or because the power output looks humongous in comparison to running the amp "Single Ended". Some people confuse balanced with running the amplifier bridged. You can run your F4 as "SE" perfectly. If you ever decide to build another F4 and run them as balanced / bridged monoblocks, you'll have a set-up that dreams are made of.
You don't "need" to have balanced for the phono or the BA-3, but it sounds like you may want to. Like I said, most of what we do in this hobby doesn't make a lot of sense, but it sure is fun.
Making the P3 balanced is as easy as adding a chip to each board and adding the outputs.
Building the BA-3 in a balanced configuration will take more effort, but you already have someone that knows how to build the boards, and you already have the additional PSU. So, why not use it?
Option 2 - Leave BA-3 SE and put the P3 in the same chassis if there is room. I'd just have your new builder lay it out properly and do some measurements to ensure that it is not noisy. If it's not noisy, then I'd bet it will sound marvelous.
Edited to add - Sorry I hit Post by accident.
Option 3 - Leave BA-3 SE and build P3 in one separate chassis. You don't use your BA-3 board you bought.
Option 4 - Leave BA-3 SE and build P3 in two chassis.
Option 5 - Build BA-3 balanced, build P3 in two chassis w/o balanced output. That seems silly to me.
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You can tell there's enough space for another BA3 would I want to run it balanced, minimum expense and effort as I already have the board, actually two of them just in case...
On the other hand to add the Pearl 3 it would mean to remove a PSU and a transformer and buy a new one to suit the phono stage power supply requests and would also mean to rearrange the internal layout but that's a matter of time.
I understand that running the pre balanced would not add significant benefits given I don't need long interconnects nor noise being a concern, still, should I leave all single ended, would it make sense to put the Pearl 3 in there or give it a separate chassis (no separate PSU, I wanna keep it neater and less possible cables!!!)
Thanks
On the other hand to add the Pearl 3 it would mean to remove a PSU and a transformer and buy a new one to suit the phono stage power supply requests and would also mean to rearrange the internal layout but that's a matter of time.
I understand that running the pre balanced would not add significant benefits given I don't need long interconnects nor noise being a concern, still, should I leave all single ended, would it make sense to put the Pearl 3 in there or give it a separate chassis (no separate PSU, I wanna keep it neater and less possible cables!!!)
Thanks
